The expansion of research on the history of the North-East of the country is explained by the growing interest in the past of the Magadan region and adjacent territories. This led to the creation of a number of original works. Among them are books by N. A. Zhikharev1 and especially "Essays on the History of Chukotka"2 . A significant event is the appearance of the "Historical Chronicle" 3, which is designed for both the general reader and researchers.

The book describes in detail the unprecedented transformations in the Far North-East of the USSR, "the mighty power and energy of which was given by the Great October Socialist Revolution. The book's scanty reports show the fervent pulse of time, the heroism and courage of the Bolsheviks, the bright, unselfish service to the great ideals of the revolution of hundreds and thousands of Northerners, messengers from all the republics and regions of the Soviet Country, who gave their energy and strength in order that the new life would warm and transform the most remote part of the country " (p. 3)..

The "Chronicle" includes about 2,300 facts and events that characterize the activities of the Communist Party, the Soviet Government, local party, Soviet, Komsomol and trade union bodies for the development of the economy and culture of the Magadan region. "Chronicle" is a work that provides a scientific periodization of the path taken by one of the youngest regions of the Russian Federation. This is a great achievement of the team of authors. The periodization adopted by them makes it possible not only to understand the social phenomena that took place, but also to trace how new political and economic tasks were solved with changing conditions, and how the practice of leading socialist and communist construction in this remote area improved. In this regard, the introductory articles to the eight sections of the book (corresponding to the selected periods) are important. It was in the introductory articles that the authors (A.D. Bogdanov, I. S. Garusov, E. K. Kurtaeva, F. N. Lovyagin, M. R. Maksimenko, B. I. Mukhachev, S. P. Nefedova, A. T. Khilobochenko) showed the inseparability of published facts and events from their party assessment and interpretation.

The book opens with the date of October 25, 1917, and ends with December 1972, when the USSR celebrated the 50th anniversary of its formation. At the beginning, events reflecting the struggle for Soviet power in the North-East (1917-1923) are highlighted: from the first Lenin decrees to the complete end of the civil war in the territory of the present-day Magadan region. A brief and concrete account of the history of revolutionary events in the entire Far East and North is supplemented by a "Chronicle", and this makes it clear that some reports seem at first glance disconnected from the historical past of the region.

The events and facts of the period of restoration and development of the reconstruction of the national economy (1923-1927) indicate that at the beginning of the socialist transformations, it was mainly about agriculture and fishing, strengthening state trade and improving the economy of the country.-

1 N. A. Zhikharev. In the struggle for the Soviets in Chukotka (1917-1953). Magadan. 1958; same name. Essays on the history of the North-East of the RSFSR. Magadan. 1961.

2 "Essays on the history of Chukotka from ancient times to the present day". Novosibirsk. 1974.

3 Editorial Board: A.D. Bogdanov (head), N. L. Belova, I. S. Garusov, G. N. Kiselev, E. K. Kurtaeva, F. N. Lovyagin, M. R. Maksimenko, B. I. Mukhachev, S. P. Nefedova.

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the gradual ousting of the private sector, the first steps of cultural construction, and, of course, the formation and strengthening of Soviet authorities on the north-eastern outskirts of the country, the birth of party, Komsomol and other mass organizations. But there is practically no evidence of the industrial development of the region. And this is not accidental, since 50 years ago there was no industry at all here.

The authors are right in asserting that the economic, organizational, cultural and educational assistance of the young socialist state played a decisive role in the fate of the small peoples of the North: redistribution of national resources, higher rates of economic and cultural development of the outskirts, more efficient development of natural storerooms. As the pages of the book show, it was in 1928-1937 that a number of victories primarily occurred in the industrial development of the region. The "countdown" of the history of the "golden" Kolyma, apparently, can be traced back to July 4, 1928, when the first Kolyma geological survey expedition of Yu. A. Bilibin landed near the village of Ola. Many dates and events tell about the development of the region, about its pioneers-pilots, engineers.

The labor tension that the country experienced in the pre-war years was also characteristic of its North-East. In Kolyma and Chukotka, as in other places, new enterprises were put into operation. In 1940, the tin mining industry of the region increased its metal production (compared to 1939) by four times. The industrial development of the North-East ensured socialist transformations of the economy and everyday life of small peoples: by the beginning of the war, collectivization was mostly completed in Kolyma. And, finally, another achievement - Magadan grew up on the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk, which became a city in 1939.

The war years put a heavy burden on the shoulders of the workers of Kolyma and Chukotka. The slogan "Everything for the front, everything for victory" was carried out with honor in the Far North. "Chronicle" reports: on February 24, 1945, the Dalstroy team was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor for fulfilling government tasks, almost 40 thousand workers received orders and medals.

On December 3, 1953, the Magadan Region was created. Social and political life in the North-East in this regard has become much richer, richer. This is evidenced by the data provided in the book on

regional party conferences. For earlier periods in the "Chronicle" there is almost no such information. In 1954-1958, there was a process of forming regional public organizations and a local working class detachment. "Chronicle" fairly fully reflected the changes that occurred in Kolyma and Chukotka. The old production teams were replenished and new ones were formed at the expense of qualified specialists who came here at the call of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Central Committee of the Komsomol. The movement for communist labor has spread in the region. The production base of the mining industry and its service industries was expanded. The "Chronicle" testifies to the attention of the Central Committee of the Party and the Soviet Government to the young region.

If the five-year period up to 1959 can be called a period of formation, then 1959-1972 is a time of comprehensive recovery of the national economy of the region based on the predominant growth of the mining industry.

Chronicle also has a number of disadvantages. It does not contain any facts about the courage and hard work of Magadan virgin land workers (many of them were awarded government awards), road workers of the Komsomol construction project "Magadan - Balagannoe", power line builders. The book also does not reflect the labor achievements of individual industries and enterprises, for example, the competition of coal miners, transport workers, oil workers, etc. The introductory articles do not comment in any way on the existence of a trade union committee in Magadan until the creation of the Kolyma District Committee, although the Kolyma District was formed and abolished in 1939.4
The authors provide an extensive list of sources and literature - 120 titles, but it is, firstly, not complete, and secondly, most of the events and facts published with links to the funds of 11 party and state archives of the country are already known. The compilers should have made more careful use of numerous printed sources and the press.

There are subject and name indexes in the book, but for the "Chronicle" it would also be important to have a geographical index, the presence of which-

4 G. G. Roshchupkin, G. K. Bubnis. On the question of the administrative structure and territorial division of Kolyma and Chukotka. "Local history notes", Magadan, 1972, vol. IX, p. 71.

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go would make it much easier to work with the book.

There are a number of errors in the text of the Chronicle. Kamchatka Regional Union of Integrated Cooperatives According to the Chronicle, Integral was formed only on September 1, 1935, whereas it is known that the integral cooperative, having fulfilled its historical mission of mainly commodity supply for the peoples of the North, was abolished in 1936 and the organizational and economic management of the agricultural and commercial economy of the North began to be carried out in the usual forms. The Kamchatka Regional Union mentioned in the Chronicle was formed on August 31, 1928 in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky at the congress of Kamchatka consumer and industrial cooperatives .5
The compilers, citing new facts unknown to science, did not mention this at least in the footnotes. Thus, the Chronicle reports on the collection of funds by Chukotka workers to the Defense Fund as follows (p. 147): 15920233 rubles in cash and over 80 million rubles in government loan bonds.

5 Party archive of the Kamchatka Regional Committee of the CPSU, f. 45, op. 1, d. 126, l. 79.

Until now, there was a point of view in the literature, according to which the last figure was 10 times less. Such a large difference requires explanation, otherwise it is perceived as a gross inaccuracy. The Institute of Agriculture has two dates of "birth" in the Chronicle: July 10, 1967 (p. 278) and August 14, 1968 (p.291). On page 225, it is stated that in 1959-1972 a branch of the Vecherny Polytechnic Institute operated in the Magadan region, but in reality it should have been a correspondence course, etc.

Publications like the one under review are always stingy in nature. They are not able to answer all the questions that researchers will have. But the events and facts included in them are based on sources that are often indicated. Thus, the "Chronicle", complementing the literature on the history of the North-East of the USSR, serves as a kind of manual on its source studies. The facts presented by the authors will serve as a basis for theoretical and practical generalizations of historians. And this is one of the most important advantages of the book.

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